Pacers notebook: Another new player, Kam Jones details injury, and more from Cup break

INDIANAPOLIS – The Pacers have played just two games in the last 10 days, with the NBA Cup break having come and gone. Last week, the Pacers got to practice riding a high, entering the pause in the schedule having won four of their last six games.

Now? The vibes are certainly different. The Pacers lost both games they played during the Cup stoppage in their schedule. They blew a fourth-quarter lead on Friday in Philadelphia before returning home to play the Wizards... and getting blasted by the worst team in the league in a no-show. Oof.

"Yes," Carlisle said when asked if Tuesday's practice was more intense as a result. "It was poor. It was probably as poorly as we played all year. We've had some other tough games. But to play like that at home was very disappointing."

Today, the Pacers exit the break by hosting the Knicks. It's the first matchup between the teams since the 2025 Eastern Conference Finals. That night, the Pacers lifted the Bob Cousy Trophy. Now, they are 6-20. The Knicks season ended that night – they come to Indy after earning a trophy in the NBA Cup just two days ago.

Things are different, clearly. And the Pacers had to a lot of new things happen to them just this week.

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The Indiana Pacers and Indiana Fever, up close

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Gabe McGlothan signs hardship contract

On Tuesday, the Pacers signed a player to a hardship contract for the sixth time this season. That's comical to write – they've been playing games for under two months. This time, Gabe McGlothan was the recipient of the 10-day pact. He was, if you'll recall, with the Pacers during the preseason.

More recently, the young forward was with the Noblesville Boom. He was playing well in the G League and has flashed some real rebounding chops at that level. I thought he did so during the preseason with the Pacers, too.

With Noblesville, McGlothan has averaged 16.9 points and 7.7 rebounds per game this season. He was waived by the Pacers from his Exhibit 10 contract after training camp.

The Pacers were granted a hardship exception and, if one is granted, using the resource does make sense. Tyrese Haliburton, Obi Toppin, Aaron Nesmith, and Ben Sheppard have to be out for two more weeks now that McGlothan is signed.

Unlike previous hardship signees for the Pacers this year, the team shouldn't need McGlothan to play rotation minutes right away. But having depth on the wing is good, and with Sheppard, Toppin, and Nesmith out a forward was needed. McGlothan can be that.

During his first practice, the 26-year old did something I've never seen before. After fulfilling his media obligations, he went to scrimmage with a few other Pacers players and basketball assistants. When he was done, he came back over to the media area and told us he wanted to talk again so he could thank some people from his journey.

That's a cool gesture, and one that I've never seen before. McGlothan wears number 41, an atypical number for an NBA player. I asked him about that choice.

"I'm big in my faith, right? So 40 is how many nights Jesus spent in the wilderness. And so 41st is just coming out of that wilderness to know God's faithfulness, all this stuff. So it was the number I decided to change to. Obviously 30 is up in the rafters, so can't choose that. But I was like, 'You know what? 41. Because I'm going to just trust God's plan, his purpose and his faithfulness and a little bit of believing in his hope,'. So it's 41 for me, continuing to chase after the wilderness," he said.

A purpose-driven life and a nice guy. McGlothan might not play much with the Pacers during these 10 days, but his attitude and personality will be good additions to the Pacers.

Kam Jones explains his injury, headed to the G League again

For the first time of the season, Kam Jones is healthy enough to practice and finally answered questions about the back injury that kept him out until an appearance with the Noblesville Boom this past Sunday.

"My body feels good," he shared. "It's a blessing to just come out here and play basketball as a job."

Jones has never missed this much time in his basketball journey before. He hated it, especially during a crucial season for him when it comes to being a long-time NBA player. His contract is not fully guaranteed for any of the three seasons after this one.

So it's important that he gets up to speed quickly and plays well. Just from observing his scrimmages in practices as well as his game with the Boom, he looks way more comfortable now than he did even one week ago.

Jones explained that his injury happened around the time during which the Pacers went down to Orlando for their mini camp at Pascal Siakam's house. He was playing basketball, took a weird step, then immediately "felt something." After trying to push through it initially, Jones told trainers.

For the coming week/weekend, Jones has been assigned to the Noblesville Boom again and will be with them for the start of the regular season down in Orlando for the G League winter showcase. That will give Jones more chances to play before he is eventually called on by the Pacers.

"He needs to play," Carlisle said on Thursday. Earlier in the week, Carlisle offered his opinion on Jones' first G League game. "I didn't see the game but I got some of the details. He was a plus in the game and they were ahead at halftime (Jones only played the first half) and I think he had six points and ran the team well. So all good stuff."

Johnny Furphy, Quenton Jackson, and Bennedict Mathurin with their own health explainers

A few more injury updates needed to be gathered this week. That's been a constant for the Pacers this year with so many guys in and out.

First up was Quenton Jackson, who missed over a month with his hamstring injury. He appeared in the game vs Washington for about eight minutes of action but went 0/3 from the field.

"Just trying to push the body, but also listen to the body," Jackson said. "This time I took a little bit more time off just to make sure that I'm fully healed." The young guard shared that he does not believe his first two hamstring injuries were related despite them both being right hamstring issues. He could feel his most recent injury constantly – even during household activities.

Jackson also mentioned that he did some work with the starting lineup on Wednesday, something that also was (possibly, given uniform colors) confirmed by one of the photos the Pacers posted on the same day. That's noteworthy and worth keeping an eye on with Ethan Thompson currently holding the fifth starting role.

Johnny Furphy also provided details on his ankle injury the same day. He, too, had never missed that much time due to injury in his career and was frustrated by his absences during a key development season.

Before his return against Denver last week, Furphy shared that pain tolerance and running through game scenarios were the final hurdles for his return. "It's very exciting. It's been a long rehab process, longer than I anticipated," he said that night. "It's been a lot of tests, a lot of different things... I'm confident that I'm ready to go."

Now, Furphy has played in five consecutive games. His assessment of his performance so far? "I expected to have a period where I'm getting my feet back under me," the Australian wing said. "I have to just be patient with myself, give myself grace, and just know it's a long, long year."

One other thing that many fans have wondered: Bennedict Mathurin's toe is still bothering him. He missed 11 games with a toe injury during October and November before returning about a month ago. But it is still an issue for Mathurin today.

"Still an issue. I would say it's still a problem, but I'm a problem solver, I find solutions," Mathurin said of his toe. I followed up and asked what specifically is more challenging for him to do right now. "Without saying too much, I can still feel it, man," he replied.

Trade season continues

There isn't much new here from last week's notebook, where I put together all of the credible reports about the Pacers so far. Add one to the list: the Pacers interest in Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler, which Marc Stein wrote about here. Add Kessler to a list with Jose Alvarado, Keon Ellis, and Daniel Gafford.

I talked about what I think are key considerations for the Pacers at the trade deadline with Rhett Bauer in the podcast below.

Bennedict Mathurin in the community

A cool thing from Wednesday: Bennedict Mathurin went to Sunny Heights Elementary School to provide toys and spread cheer as part of the holiday season on Wednesday. He made crafts with kids for nearly half an hour before surprising them with toys.

Mathurin had a good time, and I personally enjoy when these community events mesh well with the personality of a player. In this case, Mathurin spoke Creole and was supremely focused on making the best bracelet possible. Even when making crafts with kids, Mathurin was competitive.

"I'm still trying to have the best bracelets," he said. I put together a video from the event below.

Thank you for reading. These practice weeks can be crazy, so I hope having all of the information in one place is helpful to you. To support Circle City Spin or to have all these stories delivered directly to your email inbox, subscribe below.